Ohio State defensive tackle Michael Bennett says the Buckeyes need to win the Orange Bowl to be proud of this season. / Jeff Hanisch/USA TODAY

Written by

Jon Spencer

CentralOhio.com

Upon arrival in Florida, Ohio State defensive tackle Michael Bennett posted on Twitter a photo of his image plastered on the side of a bus.

Not quite the 10-story Heisman Trophy campaign poster of Oregon quarterback Joey Harrington unfurled on a New York City skyscraper, or the ginormous Nike banner of LeBron James splashed on the facade of a downtown Cleveland office building for years. But not bad.

An Ohio State defensive player on anything but the side of a milk carton these days is a surprise.

Do head coach Urban Meyer and offensive coordinator Tom Herman have both (sets of) hands back on the wheel after their strange (mis)use of tailback Carlos Hyde in the Big Ten Championship Game?

Does quarterback Braxton Miller need a map to get his passes from point A to point B?

Can either defensive coordinator be trusted to steer at this point? One of them, Everett Withers, has stayed on despite being hired as head coach at James Madison. He can’t help but be distracted. The other, Luke Fickell, might need to go into witness protection if his unit is shredded again by Tajh Boyd and his pass-happy Clemson Tigers.

If Fickell goes underground, maybe he’ll meet up with Charlie Bauman, the Clemson nose guard who has practically gone into hiding, even reportedly taking his wife’s name, to avoid talking about being a hero in the 1978 Gator Bowl.

It’s the only other time the Buckeyes and Tigers have squared off. Teed off might be a better choice of words, given that legendary OSU coach Woody Hayes slugged Bauman on the sidelines after his interception sealed Clemson’s 17-15 victory.

Hayes went down swinging, his illustrious coaching career over the next day. Naturally, his infamous final outburst was going to be revisited repeatedly once the pairings for this Orange Bowl were announced.

But in Columbus it’s a mere footnote to all the clamor surrounding Fickell and a defense that has given up 755 yards and seven touchdowns through the air in the last two games — without facing an aerial attack as prolific as Clemson’s.

How many more punches Fickell’s reputation can absorb? Not to mention the Big Ten’s? The conference’s battered image is directly tied to Michigan’s failure to hold up its end and OSU’s losses in the 2006 and 2007 national championship games.

One of the Buckeyes’ two bowl wins since then was ill-gotten gains. They beat Arkansas in the Sugar Bowl at the end of the 2010 season with five players, including quarterback Terrelle Pryor, who committed NCAA violations and never should have been allowed to suit up. They were part of the tattoos-for-memorabilia scandal and cover-up that ultimately cost coach Jim Tressel his job and led to that Big Ten championship season being vacated.

Should Ohio State get housed by Clemson it will provide more ammunition for the naysayers who have insisted the 24-game winning streak under Meyer was the product of lame scheduling and conference duds.

A team still having its last two BCS title games thrown in its face can’t afford to lay another egg.

The Buckeyes, headed for Pasadena and the national championship game until losing to Michigan State in the B1G title showdown, can’t afford to wallow in self-pity. It can’t afford to look at the Orange Bowl as a consolation prize.

“To look back on the season and be proud of it, I think we have to go out and win this, and I feel we have to go out and win this pretty handily,” Bennett said. “(The loss to Michigan State) will sit in your stomach. At the same time, what’s done is done. All you can do is move past it ... not forget it, but get the positives from it.

“If you have a pit in your stomach and a chip on your shoulder, I think we play best that way.”

Meyer always talks about wanting an angry team. Maybe that’s what will take the field in Sun Life Stadium. But where was that team the night of Dec. 7 in Lucas Oil Stadium?

I know where. Still on the bus.

By the numbers

When Ohio State has the ball

71

With 4,128 yards rushing this season, the Buckeyes are just 71 yards from breaking another school single-season record. The current mark of 4,199 has stood since 1973. Despite his reputation as a “spread” guru, Urban Meyer’s Buckeyes have rushed for 300 or more yards 10 times in his 25 games as coach, including two games this season over 400 yards. Before Meyer arrived it took 17 years and 201 games for Ohio State to rack up 10 games of over 300 yards on the ground. When the Buckeyes averaged 10.5 yards per carry this season at Illinois, it marked the first time in program history OSU had ever averaged in double figures. Meyer’s teams now hold seven of the top 10 single-game yards-per-carry averages in school annals.

When Clemson has the ball

49

Even though quarterback Tajh Boyd has accounted for six turnovers in the Tigers’ two losses, he has been the model of efficiency in the red zone. In his career, he has thrown 49 touchdowns and just three interceptions in the red zone for an astonishing efficiency rating of 220.33. This season Boyd has 12 TD passes and just one interception in the red zone after a 16-0 ratio in 2012. He had a 17-2 ratio as a sophomore in 2011. For his career, Boyd has completed 79 of 132 passes (59.8 pct.) for 669 yards inside the enemy 20.

Keys to victory

Ohio State

Drop the hammer

In other words, give the ball to Carlos Hyde. Inexplicably, too little of that took place in the 34-24 Big Ten Championship Game loss to Michigan State, partly because he was seen splitting out wide (huh?) or coming off the field on third down (huh? huh?). Not only was Hyde OSU’s most reliable weapon during the season’s stretch run, but handing him the ball was the Buckeyes’ best defense.

Harass the ‘H’ out of Tajh

While the OSU secondary has gotten most of the blame for the defensive woes, the front four did the back seven no favors in the B1G title game. Michigan State quarterback Connor Cook had a career passing day (24 of 40, 304 yards, 3 TDs), partly because he was sacked only one. If the Buckeyes can put heat on Clemson’s Tajh Boyd, he’s had a history of shrinking on the biggest stages.

Clemson

Come out roarin’

Teams tend to feel each other in showdowns like this, but it would behoove Clemson to strike quickly. Ohio State was a first quarter team all season until getting blanked by Michigan State and falling behind 17-0 in the B1G title game. The Buckeyes came all the way back to take a 24-17 lead, but may have spent itself in the process.

Live up to ranking

Clemson is ranked 16th in the country in pass efficiency defense, thanks to 16 interceptions and only 12 touchdowns allowed. But don’t confuse efficiency with consistency. Georgia’s Aaron Murray and Florida State’s Jameis Winston combined to complete 66 percent of their passes for 767 yards against the Tigers. OSU’s Braxton Miller has been a scatter arm over the last month and the Tigers need to make sure he stays that way.

Scouting reports

Ohio State

Everything points to a shootout. While Clemson has one of the nation’s most prolific passing attack, the Buckeyes boast the nation’s No. 3 rushing attack (317.5 ypg) and No. 4 scoring unit (46.3 ppg). They are virtually unstoppable in the red zone with the nation’s fourth-best conversion percentage inside the 20 (57 of 60, 95.0 pct.). Despite Braxton Miller’s recent struggles throwing the ball, OSU ranks seventh nationally in total offense (518.5 ypg). It’s simply a matter of whether the Buckeyes can score more than their defense allows. The availability of defensive end Noah Spence, cornerback Bradley Roby and linebacker Curtis Grant is in question, which will only add to the challenge of trying to slow down the best quarterback and receiver corps they have seen all season. Meyer and his 7-1 bowl record is the best thing OSU has going for it.

Clemson

Ohio State fans fretting about the defense might take solace in knowing that Clemson has come up small in its biggest games — losing 51-14 at home to Florida State and 31-17 at South Carolina in the regular season finale, its fifth straight loss in that rivalry. Statistically, the Tigers are right there on offense with the Buckeyes. They feature the nation’s 12th-ranked passing attack (329.3 ypg), averaging 502 yards of total offense and 40.2 points per game. Even if Clemson can’t run the ball it has several options on offense, led by junior wideout Sammy Watkins, who if he opts to leave early for the NFL would look mighty fine in a Browns uniform. Defensively, the Tigers have given up more than 30 points four times, but they do lead the nation in tackles for loss, which should make for an intriguing battle in the trenches.